Bear Mccreary October 24, 2001 Jon Burlingame “The Rocketeer” an Analysis of the Film Score by James Horner When Music and F
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Bear McCreary October 24, 2001 Jon Burlingame “The Rocketeer” An Analysis of the Film Score by James Horner When music and film are combined in a way that both are expressive, rather than one completely serving another, the end result is an example of what cinema can truly achieve. One such film is “The Rocketeer,” released by Walt Disney Pictures in 1991. The film, directed by Joe Johnston, was based on the comic book by Dave Stevens. Set in Los Angeles, in 1938, the film focuses on a young pilot named Cliff Secord who inadvertantly discovers a secret rocket pack designed and built by Howard Hughes. Cliff first intends to use the rocket to make some money at the Air Show. However, he soon ends up being pursued by the mob, the FBI and a massive goon named Lothar who works for Neville Sinclair, a Hollywood movie star spying for the Nazis. James Horner composed the film’s music, a sweeping orchestral score in the tradition of action-swashbucklers of the 1930’s and 1940’s. While the approach to the score is very traditional, elements of it stand out against typical adventure film scores. The music in “The Rocketeer” is unusually energetic and dramatic. The score develops like a piece written for the concert stage. The mix of the score versus sound effects very often favors the music, a rare McCreary, 2 occurrence for action films, which tend to focus on explosions and other loud sounds to carry the dramatic impact. The result is that “The Rocketeer” is a strikingly musical movie. If this film were made today, the director would probably want simple music, ensuring that the audience would not be distracted from the dizzying computer-animated flying sequences. However, the film was not made with computer-animated effects, and Horner was allowed to provide the energy for these intense sequences with his orchestral score. This approach to action films is all but extinct today. However, even in its time, the score to “The Rocketeer” was exceptionally energetic, sweeping and full of character. Thematic Analysis of “The Rocketeer” “The Rocketeer” is an extremely thematic score, in the traditional Wagnerian sense. Every major character in the film is associated with a musical theme. Once established, the themes can be altered, interwoven and developed to help communicate what is happening on screen. John Williams revitalized this approach to film scoring with his music for “Star Wars” in 1977. Many of James Horner’s scores utilize this technique, but few so strongly as “The Rocketeer.” Cliff Secord’s Theme: The main theme of the film is associated with the hero, Cliff Secord. The melodic and harmonic structure is simple, noble and American. The theme’s inspiration clearly comes from Aaron Copland. McCreary, 3 The main theme’s many variations range from a quiet solo piano statement to a sweeping full orchestra fanfare. Cliff’s theme works beautifully in both contexts. The quiet, slower statements evoke the nobility and charisma of a hard-working, down-on-his-luck American pilot in the 1930’s. The faster, orchestral fanfares use the same material, yet race through the sky with exhilarating energy. The Rocketeer Theme This theme is really a variation on Cliff Secord’s theme. While the main theme represents Cliff whether he is flying or not, this theme is only used when he is flying, or during moments when he is particularly heroic. McCreary, 4 Melodically and harmonically, it is clearly very similar to Cliff’s theme. However, it is even more action-oriented, used almost exclusively during the most heroic moments of the film. The melodic line and intense rhythmic punches from the orchestra between phrases suggest a kind of heroism found in the scores of the classic Westerns of the 1960’s and 1970’s, most notably those by Elmer Bernstein. Clearly, the filmmakers wanted a rousing, heroic American character. Cowboys are the most classic and enduring American heroes, and at times Horner used the Rocketeer theme as if Cliff Secord were a cowboy. The ability of the music to create a sense of American nationality in the audience was clearly important to the composer and director. Cliff Secord is originally introduced to the audience as a likeable American boy, though an unlikely hero. He eventually faces off with Neville Sinclair, a movie star who is, in fact, a Nazi spy. Neville’s character is loosely based on Errol Flynn, an actor of the film’s vintage suspected of being a fascist. The film makes the Nazis’ intentions clear: to steal the rocket from Howard Hughes, learn its technology, and send armies of flying soldiers overseas to invade and conquer America. Once the audience learns this, it becomes clear that Cliff Secord must now become a national hero. At one of the most dramatic moments in the film, the Rocketeer pauses in front a large American flag before blasting off. This image was even used in some of the promotion for the film. Horner emphasized this sense of Americanism in his music for Cliff. McCreary, 5 Jenny’s Theme Jenny Blake is Cliff Secord’s girlfriend. They clearly have been together for a while, but he has never really confessed how much her cares for her. In fact, he messes up with her about as much as a guy can. Horner’s elegant theme for Jenny is underplayed in the final version of the film, although it got a lengthy track on the soundtrack album. Both Jenny and Cliff are struggling to find time for each other and for their careers, Cliff’s as a pilot and Jenny’s as an aspiring actress. However, Jenny’s ambitions are more thickly layered and less transparent than Cliff’s. Jenny is a more complex character than Cliff, and so her theme could not have been as bold or full of conviction. A more ambiguous thematic approach was necessary. Jenny’s theme is more harmonically and melodically interesting than Cliff’s theme. Cliff’s sense of American bravado is countered by Jenny’s sense of elegance and mystery. The mixed major I and minor IV chords in the first four bars give her theme a darkness that Cliff’s does not have. The next two bars of the theme suddenly modulate up to the flat II chord, yet the contour of the melody line helps smooth over the transition. After two bars, the theme drifts back down to the original key. The unusual harmonic progression gives the theme an ambiguous quality. McCreary, 6 Melodically, Cliff’s theme and Jenny’s theme are reverse stereotypes. Typically, the hero’s theme in adventure movies is comprised of large intervals, often leaping in opposite directions. John Williams’ scores to films such as “Superman,” “Star Wars” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark” have had a major impact on associating this kind of melody with heroic characters. This tradition also goes back to Elmer Bernstein’s “The Magnificent Seven” in 1960 and even further. However, in “The Rocketeer,” the hero’s theme is melodically derived out of scale patterns. There are very few intervalic leaps at all. The majority of the intervalic leaps occur in the second part of the theme, which is rarely stated throughout the film. Likewise, love themes in adventure films are often more scalar and melodically simple. In this case, Jenny’s theme is more angular and interval-based than Cliff’s theme. The largest leap in her theme, that of an octave, is rarely found in typical love themes. James Horner is clearly not the first composer to go against these stereotypes. However, “The Rocketeer” is an adventure film set in this traditional genre of action films and more stereotypical themes could certainly have served the film. Still, despite the somewhat unusual melodic contours, both themes fit their respective characters perfectly. Neville Sinclair’s Motives James Horner did not write a theme for the villain, Neville Sinclair. Instead, Sinclair was given two primary motives, or melodic fragments, which are often used together, although frequently developed independently as well. This approach to adventure scores is not unique, although it is uncommon. In “Star Wars,” John Williams did not write a theme for Darth Vader, or the Empire. He simply wrote a brief motive that would serve the purpose. It was not until “The Empire Strikes Back” that he introduced “The Imperial March,” a complete piece of music with multiple sections, to stand for the villains. McCreary, 7 Horner’s two motives for Neville Sinclair are both short. However, each is used in sequence with itself, repeating and changing keys. One of these motives occurring in complete isolation without repetition is rare. This motive spells out a minor chord with a major seven, which clearly wants to resolve up to I. When this motive is repeated, it is almost always repeated three times, in ascending octaves. The last note will resolve upwards by a half step to the tonic and sustain. This particular development of this motive occurs many times throughout the score. The second motive is also very short. The following example is comprised of two statements of Neville Sinclair’s second motive: While the first motive is always repeated in octaves, the repetition of the second motive always occurs in unusual intervals, usually related by some chromatic tone. For example, the second motive is first stated in B minor (see figure above). Then, the figure is repeated at the interval of a tri-tone. However, the opening note of the second statement is only a half step down from the ending note of the first statement.